Golden State Warriors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Game Preview

Golden State pays a visit to the Cavs, which for them, is a very good thing. As the teams get together on Thursday night, the Dubs enter, having won seven games in a row versus Cleveland in the regular season. Their last loss came four years ago when Kyrie Irving made the game-winner on Christmas. GS has absolutely owned these guys.

Steph Curry has been on an absolute tear of late, trying to do things simultaneously. The first, is trying to sneak himself back into MVP conversations, a place he had been for several weeks before a little cold spell. The second, is keeping his Warriors team in the playoff mix and trying to win as much as possible to perhaps avoid the play-in tournament.

Cleveland comes in off a win the prior evening. Taurean Prince went for 25 points and knocked down six threes off the bench to help guide the team past the short-handed Hornets. The return of Jarrett Allen gave them a nice interior presence, while Darius Garland was able to help them get off to a quick start offensively. Believe it or not, the Cavs are only two games out of being included in the play-in tournament this season.

Odds: The Warriors are -7.5 favorites to win their eighth in a row over the Cavs.

Dubs Seeking Move Back to .500

It feels like there is a record number of teams hovering around .500 in the NBA this season. Every time a game preview is written, one of the two teams is within two games of .500 and trying to get back to midlevel. It has been a weird year like that, good because of the parity, but bad because there is less certainty from these teams, just alternating win-loss over and over.

As the regular season heads to its final stretch, Curry is playing his best ball of what has been an incredible season. The injury to James Wiseman has not yet derailed the team. They should probably look to add another big man but have done no such thing yet. Perhaps Draymond at the center is their best option from here.

Let’s see how this one goes.

Cavs Look for Win No. 21

At 20-34, the Cavs have their highest win total in three years. Having won exactly 19 games during each of the past two seasons, they have found ways to win a little more often, with some more regularity too. If you take away their 10-game skid (which you obviously can’t), the team sits at 20-24. Had they won just a few games in that period, they’d likely already be inside the top 10.

Darius Garland is having an incredible campaign, continuing to be a guiding force at point guard. Matthew Dellavedova does a great job of spelling him whenever he needs a rest, firing off dimes and lobs to those that are in a position to make a play.

Sexton or not, the Cavs should be able to make this matchup closer and probably not lose by 31 again.